Business leaders and civic organisations in El Salvador have called on people to attend a demonstration against crime later today to show their anger at rising levels of violence and delinquency.

Official figures show that on average seventeen people are killed each day in El Salvador; that's more than during the country's twelve-year civil war.

The Salvadoran Chamber of Commerce, which is heading the anti-crime initiative, says businesses and the country are losing millions of dollars as a result of theft and robbery.

A spokesman for the Chamber said the police force, set up under the peace accords, is still too inexperienced and ill-equipped to tackle organised crime.